David A. Nuttle is a former “GS-14 CIA Special Operations Officer” — which sounds impressive — who has gone on to perform humanitarian aid in dangerous places around the world.
He wrote the Volunteer Safety & Survival Reference as “a single, quick reference to the essential information needed to help volunteers survive natural and man-made disasters of all types”:
In the decades following initial publication, the earlier 1979 handbook was used by police and military personnel, Boy Scouts, Peace Corps volunteers, and volunteers for charities and NGOs (non-governmental organizations). From the many testimonials of these users, the safety and survival information herein provided helps to save lives. At the same time, this safety and survival guide acted to sustain volunteer operations in high threat areas.Materials added to this handbook were designed to provide known safety and survival techniques for volunteers working in overseas areas with extensive armed conflict and related hazards. The need for a such information has been emphasized by increased numbers of volunteers being kidnapped and killed in countries like Iraq, Afghanistan, Sudan, and other nations with high rates of conflict. Moreover, most charities and NGOs seldom effectively train their volunteers in safety and/or survival techniques.